From January 5 to February 23, IBA Group participated in the Outsourcing World Summit (OWS22) held by the International Association of Outsourcing Professionals (IAOP). This year, OWS22 was a series of fully online, virtual events that took place each Wednesday throughout January and February 2022 with an additional design thinking workshop in spring. Reinvent, Rebuild & Reemerge was the motto of the event.

In total, the summit consisted of eight weeks. The OWS22 virtual event series also included:

• Insightful keynotes, panel discussions and Q&A
• Chat interaction and gamification
• The annual IAOP Awards ceremony
• An engaging workshop
• Full access to presentations during and post-event

This year’s summit was the 25th anniversary of the OWS, the community of like-minded dedicated individuals coming together to share experiences and best practices to connect and to partner. OWS22 was dedicated to Scott Douglas, former Managing Director at IAOP. Scott passed away from the COVID19.

Week #1, January 5

Everest Group, a research partner of IAOP, presented their 2022 Key Issues in Global Sourcing report in the presentation entitled Workers of the Future and the Future of Work. The survey involved global multinational companies.

The research addressed the major concern that all organizations want to understand: what can we do to mitigate the impact of the talent shortage? The labor pyramids for North America and Europe show that fewer new working age people will join the labor force in the next decades. Currently, half of the employees are actively looking to change their jobs. This translates into salary increases and higher costs for employers. As a result, buyers intend to outsource a part of their jobs. Enterprises expect to receive high quality services from service providers versus productivity that was the main requirement in 2021.

The keynote address was followed by a panel discussion of advisors’ views on the talent war, what they are seeing on the ground, and actions one can take to prepare for the new reality.

Week #2, January 12

IBM was the global partner and sponsor of Week#2. Neil Hirshman, IAOP strategic Advisory Board Member, kicked off week two, giving a brief overview of what was going on in the outsourcing industry in the past year with a focus on healthcare and data. A panel discussion with IBM Talent executives examined the Talent Ecosystem and shared how Talent Acquisition, Talent Development, Strategic Workforce Planning, Change, and Employee Experience working together can help keep and grow your Skills Currency.

Week #3, January 19

Atul Vashistha, IAOP strategic Advisory Board Vice-Chair, presented key procurement trends for 2022. The keynote presentations were devoted to AI and ethics, supplier diversity, and the transformation of global business services.

Week #4, January 26

Maura Hudson, IAOP strategic Advisory Board Member, discussed the future of work, distinguishing between three visions, namely people, place, and space. The challenges that emerged or exploded in the last two years are women empowerment; creating more diverse, equitable, and inclusive cultures; enabling health and well-being in the workplace; enriching company culture in distributed work models to better accommodate hybrid work models; bettering workplace experience with employee in-space design; commitment to sustainability; and evolving for AI and automation.

Week #5, February 2

Karen Bobear, IAOP strategic Advisory Board Member and Managing Director at Accenture, kicked off week five with a brief overview of Intelligence Automation. Automation makes us more human, enabling us to use creativity, empathy, and critical thinking. Automation is not about replacing humans but making them more human. ATMs have been in place since 1967, but intelligent automation is using cognitive technologies like AI and machine learning. Automation is not about the elimination of jobs. It is about enabling people with the power of automation, so that they can do their jobs differently and better than before, as well as make better data-driven decisions.

Week #6, February 9

Week six focused on technology leadership for business transformation and digital ecosystem partnerships.

Week #7, February 16

Jon Browning, IAOP Strategic Advisory Board Member and CEO at Global Mentorship Initiative, kicked off week seven with a presentation on impact sourcing. In the last 20 years, the percentage of people living in extreme poverty worldwide has been cut in half. Income per person has doubled since the year 2000 and life expectancy has grown from 53 years in 1960 to 73 years in the last decade. Jon called upon attendees to advocate impact sourcing and told a story of a Syrian refugee who received a job at Cisco and landed to work in Istanbul thanks to a mentorship initiative.

The major part of week seven was devoted to the awards and recognition of the best individuals and organizations involved in outsourcing.

• Leadership Hall of Fame. Recognizing individuals not only for their contributions to innovative management practices and collaborative business models but just as important, for their contributions to society-at-large through measurable outcomes
• Global Excellence in Outsourcing. Recognizing outsourcing buy-side teams at customer organizations that are leading the effort to better serve their organization’s customers and make their companies more successful through collaborative partnerships

·        The Global Outsourcing 100. Recognizing top outsourcing service providers and advisors through a rigorous, opt-in application process. IBA Group has been included in the top 100 outsourcing service providers list for the tenth consecutive year

• Excellence in Strategic Partnerships. Recognizing providers and advisors with demonstrated excellence in collaboration, innovation, and outcomes in their strategic partnerships
• Global Impact Sourcing Award. Recognizing organizations that are leaders in Impact Sourcing
• Member of the Year Award. Recognizing individuals who have made exceptional contributions to the association and membership over the course of the previous year

Red Ladder Women in Outsourcing Awards. Recognizing. Identifying and recognizing high performing and high potential women leaders, and leveraging them as role models for other aspiring women

Week #8, February 23

Week eight featured an official launch of the IAOP Center for Social Impact. The center is designed to create channels for impact sourcing, socially responsible outsourcing, equity and inclusion, women empowerment leadership, refugee support, and mentorship of underserved students.

IBA Group participated as an attendee and an exhibitor, and was among The Global Outsourcing 100 providers and advisors.  This year, the exhibition booth was virtual. Although providing multiple advantages, the virtual format lacked the benefits of face-to-face meetings. IBA Group, as well as other delegates, are looking forward to the OWS23 to meet with their peers in person.

IBA Group took part in #OPEXWeek 2020, a gold standard event for global business transformation and OPEX leaders. OPEX Week has been delivering insights into operational excellence and the holistic business transformation community for 21 years.

This year’s event in Orlando saw 150+ speakers, 700+ attendees, 50+ exhibitors, 2 reception parties, and 9 award winners. The four days were packed with keynotes, case studies, and discussions. The business transformation leaders came together to discover what it takes to drive a meaningful and sustainable transformation, in terms of processes, technologies, and people. Top executives shared the stage to discuss strategies, tools, and challenges in driving enterprise to business transformation.

The list of this year’s hot topics included the choice of business processes for automation, the standardization and scaling of business processes, and the overview of available automation platforms. Most attendees agreed that automation starts from rethinking and reevaluating the company’s structural units and consistently cultivating the change culture among employees.

IBA Group has implemented over 500 processes on the major automation platforms from the industry leaders (IBM, WorkFusion, UI Path, and Automation Anywhere). Before automation, our experts prepare a thorough assessment of business processes and test various toolsets, launch pilot projects on several platforms to find the best solution, and meet stringent requirements of internal and external audits. Other critical issues include information security and compliance with external sources.

The industry professionals said that to improve the efficiency and save money, the company structure should to be viewed from a holistic perspective with all elements being interconnected at different tiers. Many speakers concluded that top executives are responsible for the automation results. However, the success of any automation project depends on the engagement and awareness of every employee.

IBA Group shared its experience in building DevOps on the mainframe at the GSE UK Conference held from November 5 to November 7 at Whittlebury Hall, Northamptonshire, UK. The Guide Share Europe (GSE) UK Conference is a major event in the mainframe business calendar, featuring executive speakers and practical sessions on the latest hot topics. This year’s strapline was Dock into the Dark Side.

The 2019 GSE UK Conference provided intensive education across a broad range of mainframe topics. Highlights from the agenda included open source projects based on z/OS and DevOps that are transforming the very nature of mainframe. The conference was reported as the biggest and best by both the organizers and attendees. The full agenda comprised up to 18 streams and more than 220 hours of presentations, performance classes, and hands-on labs.

IBA Group was a Silver Sponsor of the event.

IBA Group’s enthusiastic young mainframers shared their DevOps story on how they integrated and automated a development lifecycle for a variety of teams and built CI/CD pipeline for z applications, the problems they addressed and the challenges they are facing today.

Those who missed IBA Group’s live broadcast on Instagram and Facebook can view the presentations following the links below:

DevOps for Mainframe or the Tale of the Unicorns

zDevOps: What We Do How We Do 

The two presentations were well received with standing room only and were followed by an engaging discussion. Numerous delegates came to IBA Group’s stand to ask questions and share their views on DevOps. Students taking part in the event were impressed by the degree of expertise and experience of IBA Group’s young speakers. In addition to DevOps, visitors to the IBA Group’s stand in the exhibition area were able to learn about our mainframe solutions, including APPULSE and automated converters.

The mainframe lies at the very core of the IBA Group’s expertise and the mainframe journey dates back to 1993 when the company was founded as an IBM partner. IBA Group has special expertise in mainframe software development, both system and applied, and in legacy systems migration. More than 400 professionals are engaged in mainframe system and application development and support. Currently, IBA is a Platinum Business Partner of IBM.

From February 18 to 21, the IAOP’s Outsourcing World Summit 2018 took place at the Renaissance at SeaWorld hotel in Orlando, Florida. IBA Group participated in the event as an exhibitor, IAOP member, and a Global Outsourcing 100 company, meeting with potential customers and partners.

This year’s summit highlighted the topics of developing technologies, dedicating its sessions to innovation, artificial intelligence, blockchain and bitcoin, RPA, cognitive automation, and the future of customer relations. Jared Weiner, Executive Vice President & Chief Strategy Officer at The Future Hunters, spoke on the rapidly changing world of technology in his keynote entitled Reimagining the Future of Outsourcing. He touched upon the topics of ‘other’ outsourcing – the disintermediation of human labor, the future of globalization, advancements in virtual and augmented reality, the ‘green-to-blue’ model of chain sustainability, and the industrial Internet of Things.

First produced in 1998, the Summit has been held over 30 times on five continents and is renowned for the quality of its speakers and the depth and breadth of its educational programs. OWS is keynoted by top business, academic and government leaders, and complemented by dozens of in-depth breakout sessions and case studies for customers and providers.

First produced in 1998, the Summit has been held over 30 times on five continents and is renowned for the quality of its speakers and the depth and breadth of its educational programs. OWS is keynoted by top business, academic and government leaders, and complemented by dozens of in-depth breakout sessions and case studies for customers and providers.

From February 16 to February 19, 2014, the outsourcing industry’s leading thinkers and practitioners gathered at the Disney’s Contemporary Resort & Conference Center in Lake Buena Vista, Florida for the 17th annual Outsourcing World Summit. Organized by the International Association of Outsourcing Professionals (IAOP), the summit aimed to challenge and educate the attendees, as well as to provide essential insights on the latest developments that are shaping the outsourcing industry. More than 800 delegates from 41 countries attended the event.

The summit’s program included more than 50 conference sessions with 100 speakers, an exhibition with 80 exhibitors, an awards luncheon, and a variety of networking events. The sessions offered visionary keynote presentations and interactive panel discussions.
At the awards luncheon, IAOP recognized the best outsourcing professional teams with the Global Excellence in Outsourcing (GEO) Award, named the IAOP Members of the Year, encouraged excellence in Corporate Social Responsibility (SCR) with the IAOP/ISG Global Outsourcing Social Responsibility Impact Award (GOSRIA), and honored C–level executives and leading academics working in the outsourcing field at The Outsourcing Hall of Fame for their contributions to the management practice, the industry of outsourcing, and society at–large. In addition, IAOP unveiled its The Global Outsourcing 100 and The World’s Best Outsourcing Advisors lists.

Special attention at the conference was devoted to CSR in outsourcing. Two dedicated sessions were held on the topic. The first session focused on Impact Sourcing, a new field of the outsourcing industry creating jobs for disadvantaged. The other session considered the best practices, trends and priorities in CSR.

IBA Group was listed among the Global Outsourcing 100 companies and participated as an exhibitor and a member of IAOP.

From February 19 to February 22, outsourcing professionals from across the world gathered at the IAOP’s 2017 Outsourcing World Summit® (OWS17) held in San Antonio, Texas. IBA Group attended the summit as an exhibitor and an IAOP member. In addition, IBA Group was selected for the Leaders category of The Global Outsourcing 100 list that IAOP unveiled at the OWS17.

Entitled Harnessing the Power of Disruption, the summit gathered more than 700 delegates. According to the organizers, the 20th anniversary edition of IAOP’s annual conference demonstrated the strength of outsourcing as a global platform to grow and transform businesses.

The event’s program featured keynote presentations, panel discussions, and educational track sessions. The keynote presentations focused on the state and evolution of the outsourcing industry, on business strategies that help adapt to a changing environment, and on women empowerment and opportunity in outsourcing. In addition, Jared Weiner of The Future Hunters provided a vision of the future of economy and society in his breathtaking presentation The Future Game. He made assumptions on “how the accelerating pace of technological change is set to disrupt everything around us, examining several emerging workplace trends and who (and what) will make up the future workforce.”

Robotics, artificial intelligence, digitization, and other technology trends were examined at technology track sessions, while governance, contracts, negotiations, and innovation were the focus of educational track sessions.

At the event, IBA Group was able to learn more about technology and market trends, meet potential clients, and share views with other Certified Outsourcing Professionals (COPs), outsourcing providers, and outsourcing advisers.

IBA Group exhibits at Outsourcing World Summit in Phoenix, Arizona From February 15 to February 18, IBA Group attended the Outsourcing World Summit® organized by the International Association of Outsourcing Professionals (IAOP) in Phoenix, Arizona. As an IAOP’s corporate member, IBA Group was invited to become a Global Services Mall sponsor and an exhibitor. In addition, IAOP revealed its 2015 Global Outsourcing 100 at the Summit, listing IBA Group among the Global Outsourcing 100 companies.

In its 18th year, The 2015 Outsourcing World Summit® gathered the industry’s best thought leaders and practitioners. A major part of the Summit’s sessions was devoted to educating outsourcing professionals on the latest trends and best practices that shape the industry. With more than 800 attendees and over 50 conference sessions, the Summit provided good opportunities for networking with peers and influencing the direction of the outsourcing industry.

The program of the summit included an academic outsourcing workshop, an exhibition, keynote presentations, networking and social events, and educational track sessions.

IBA Group exhibits at Outsourcing World Summit in Phoenix, ArizonaJagdish Dalal, COP, Chief Advisor, Thought Leadership, IAOP, and Todd Lavieri, President, Americas, ISG, shared the results of the IAOP’s State of the Industry survey. Mike Corbett, Chairman, IAOP, and Teresa Carroll, Senior Vice President and General Manager, KellyOCG, presented the results of the IAOP/KellyOCG Outsourcing Talent Survey.

A focal point of the educational track sessions was new technologies and innovative approaches to outsourcing, covering cloud sourcing, hybrid sourcing, Big Data, artificial intelligence, robotics, atomically precise manufacturing, and the Internet of Everything (IoE).

Other issues included geopolitical risk in outsourcing; impact sourcing, when outsourcing offers not only value for business, but also provides an opportunity for individuals to improve their lives, the lives of their families, and communities; multiple sourcing; and the people factor in outsourcing.

Visit IBA Group on Facebook to see more photos of the 2015 Outsourcing World Summit in Phoenix, Arizona

From February 17 to February 19, IAOP conducted the Outsourcing World Summit (OWS2.0) in Orlando, Florida. IBA Group participated in the event as an exhibitor, an IAOP corporate member, and a Global Outsourcing 100 company.

At the summit, IBA Group promoted its services and solutions at the company’s booth and met potential customers and partners at formal and informal networking events. IBA Group’s conversations with the delegates focused on RPA and IBA’s growing expertise in intelligent automation.

The summit kicked off with a welcome speech by Debi Hamill, IAOP CEO, and an insightful keynote presentation by Marci Rossell, outlining past and recent economic trends. According to Dr. Rossell, the oil and the stock market prices are no longer reliable indicators of economic health or recession. Everyone needs to look at income per person as stronger measure.

This year’s event focused heavily on Socially Responsible Outsourcing (SRO), with representatives of such companies as Facebook, Sprint, and Avasant sharing their initiatives with attendees. The general idea is that today’s buyer prefers to work with providers who apply SRO strategies and recognizes that a diverse supplier base and workforce is good for business. The outsourcing industry is also aware of its obligations to act as a global citizen for the benefit of society, and promote ethical and responsible conduct throughout the supply chain.

One of the most engaging parts of OWS2.0 was Spark! Speed Networking. Paired delegates had eight minutes to find common grounds and discuss their potential cooperation.

In addition, this year, IAOP introduced a new gamification element to OWS, enabling more opportunities for networking. IAOP created a number of unique codes that could be found on attendees’ badges, companies’ booths, social media, and inside the venue. Code hunting encouraged people to go out, meet new people, and create new partnerships.

First produced in 1998, the summit has been held over 30 years on five continents and is renowned for the quality of its speakers, and the depth and breadth of its educational programs.

From February 17 to February 20, the IAOP’s Outsourcing World Summit 2019 (OWS19) took place in Orlando, Florida. IBA Group participated in the event as an exhibitor, an IAOP corporate member, and a Best of The Global Outsourcing 100 company.

At the summit, IBA Group promoted its services and solutions at the company’s booth, meeting potential customers and partners. IBA Group’s conversations with the delegates focused on RPA, AI, and mainframe.

In addition, IBA Group was recognized as a Best of The Global Outsourcing 100 company. Results were based upon an evaluation of the scoring results over the entirety of The Global Outsourcing 100 program.

The overall theme of OWS19 was business transformation. The presentations by leading outsourcing visionaries were focused on the topics that turn the industry upside down, including digital transformation, intelligent automation, and cybersecurity.

Among the brightest stars of the event was a robot called Pepper. Pepper introduced Anand Birje, Corporate Vice President and Global Head, Digital & Analytics, HCL Technologies; and Ian Fox, Head of Media Operations, Manchester United, who spoke about Digital Transformation and how it fundamentally changes the way companies operate and deliver value.

Keynote presentations and breakout sessions were held for the audiences interested in specific topics, including GDPR, customer experience, RPA, risk management, European outsourcing market, and digital empathy.

One of the highlights of the breakout sessions was a panel entitled How Women Executives in Typically Male-Dominated Industries Command Outcomes by Empowering Others. Led by Chitra Rajeshwari, chair of IAOP’s Women Empowerment, Leadership and Diversity chapter, the panel brought the conversation to the forefront. Women leaders of the outsourcing industry shared their success stories and ideas of how men could assist women in achieving greater influence and C-level positions.

First produced in 1998, the Summit has been held over 30 years on five continents and is renowned for the quality of its speakers and the depth and breadth of its educational programs.

From March 10 to March 14, IBA Group participated in the SHARE Phoenix 2019 conference. The event gathered mainframe professionals.

At SHARE Phoenix 2019, IBA Group spoke about APPULSE, the company’s proprietary product, demonstrating how to improve ITIL Incident Management process to support business applications running on z/OS servers.

APPULSE is a centralized support platform for business applications that run on z/OS servers. Designed for Level 1 and Level 2 support, APPULSE provides uninterrupted operation of critical business applications, resulting from proactive problem identification and resolution.

In addition, SHARE delegates had an opportunity to familiarize themselves with IBA Group’s mainframe services at the company’s booth.

SHARE Phoenix featured more than 500 tech sessions, taking place simultaneously over the course of the event. The sessions aimed at exchanging mainframe expertise between the attendees.

The event content spans across the eight areas:

• Operating systems (z/OS, z/VM, Linux)
• Application development
• Systems management
• Middleware
• Storage
• Security
• Databases
• Network.

SHARE is an independent volunteer-run information technology association that provides education, professional networking, and industry influence. To date, SHARE includes more than 1,000 companies with 13,000 individual contacts within the enterprise IT ecosystem. SHARE organizes two in-person events each year with more than 800 attendees and over 500 educational sessions per event.

The next SHARE event will take place in Pittsburgh from August 4 to August 9.